The Charlotte Mason Method Inspires Me

"Water Lilies"

We all know I love the Charlotte Mason method.  That's a given.  But there are moments when I'm reminded of how great it really is.  All of us, Charlotte Mason or not, can grow so accustomed to doing something that we just do it without much thought, right?  Sometimes it takes a reminder to kick our appreciation back into gear.

With all the challenges I've had recently, I found myself looking at my schedule and thinking "Gosh.. maybe I should just do it some other way..   Maybe that would be easier."  Just looking at that daily list was becoming a daunting, discouraging experience given the work training schedule and Alexis' sleep habits getting in the way.  I felt overwhelmed.

I had made up my mind last weekend that I was going to do what I want to do which is homeschool uninterrupted by life.  I dared the world to throw any monkey wrenches into my plans! On Monday morning we were all up bright and early. Actually, it wasn't so bright... the sun was barely up yet.  We had breakfast and had some wake up time until lessons started at 9am.  We started with our scripture memory and moved right into Bible History which is followed by World History.

Time for picture study. I was looking at "Water Lilies" by Claude Monet and listening to my 8 year-old talk about the brush strokes he used. I realized I was listening to the girls discuss the colors:

"Pink, green, yellow and a little blue." 
"Definitely yellow but a lot of blue for the water."
"Yeah and red."
"Purple. Do you see purple?"
"Uh huh."

This was the first moment of realization. This is why we do what we do!  It's all about this!  If I'd never learned the Charlotte Mason method, would I be discussing the colors in a painting with my children? Would they be noticing these details or even looking?  Probably not.

Then we moved on to read pages 18-35 of "Who Was Claude Monet".  We read of how he enjoyed living and painting in Paris.  We read that this ended because he had to serve in the French Army.  He was commissioned for 7 years and it was cut short to only 2 years because he contracted Typhoid Fever.  He continued to paint.  His family continued to disapprove.  His father cut him off financially because he disapproves of Claude's relationship with Camille.  Camille appears in many of his paintings.

Another moment.  Would I be learning about the famous artists and composers alongside my children, had I not discovered this method?  Probably not.  After all, we were homeschoolers for 10 years prior to learning of the CM method and never had I learned these things or even thought to study or teach them.

Math, grammar, reading, science....Before I knew it, it was 12:00. Time for lunch! Wow! Already? Dangit!

And there is was..
The moment I realized that my Charlotte Mason schedule isn't daunting at all!  In fact, our homeschool day flies by faster than I would ever like it to and I'm left wanting more. The girls love their school days and so do I. At these moments, I can't figure out how I became so discouraged!

What amazing things do you love about your lessons? What inspires or motivates you to move forward despite everything?



Happy Homeschooling!